Six Fantasy Football Quarterbacks to Avoid 2016

The clock is ticking. The natural timer in your head is telling you to pull the trigger. What the hell are you waiting for?

Pick a damn fantasy quarterback already! You can’t be like Tony Romo and hold the ball until you get your clavicle snapped by a nasty linebacker.

Make a decision already.

If this sounds like the internal monologue inside your own head every year during your fantasy football draft, you are not alone.

Indecisive, yes. But not alone.

There are millions of other fantasy fools out there who can’t decide who should lead their fantasy team each week either. And we’re talking season long leagues here, just to be clear.

The daily fantasy draft picks are easier since you can switch it up weekly if you realize Tony Romo’s body is brittle as a double stick popsicle.

The best way to make sure you get the right quarterback for your season long fantasy league is to be……

Say it together. P-r-e-p-a-r-e-d.

If you are prepared, you won’t piss off the other guys in your draft who can’t fathom why you need the full 1.5 minutes to make each draft pick. Besides not angering your fantasy friends, being prepared might actually get you the right passer to help you be competitive for once.

You must be tired of coming in last each and every year. Right?

Hell, you might even win your fantasy league this time.

Let’s not get carried away just yet. You’ve got a long way to go if you are too scared to make a choice for your QB1. I can’t imagine how long it takes you to decide to drop a player from your roster or make a trade if you struggle so much on draft night.

I’m gonna make this easier for you this year. I’ll narrow your draft list at quarterback. I’ll do the same for other positions in the coming days, but for now , we’ll focus on the guy that touches the ball on every single fantasy snap.

Here are six NFL quarterbacks to avoid drafting in your fantasy league. No particular order. All you need to know is to avoid picking them as your starting QB. They may be fine to take as an emergency backup, but can’t be trusted weekly.

– Matt Ryan. Oh, how it pains me to throw my man under the bus. But how many redzone picks can the guy throw before you realize he can’t be trusted? I’ve seen enough. He’s already picked up where he left off in 2015 by padding the INT stats of the 2016 Dolphins’ preseason defense.

– Tony Romo. Wow, hurt already and we’re three minutes into football season. The Cowboys leader is fragile and just really unlucky. Don’t bet on Romo in a poker game or draft him for your fantasy team. You’d be better off taking his backup Dak Prescott who may set a record for picks once he has to fill in for Romo. But at least Dak will be on the field.

– Tom Brady. Somebody will take Brady in your league even though he’s gonna miss four games. Let them have him. Can you afford to go four games with a lousy QB to hold down the fort while you wait on Brady to get back?

– Eli Manning. The Giants QB is going to be tempting to lots of fantasy players who are in love with Odell Beckham Jr. Don’t fall into that trap. You do want ODB, but Eli will casually throw the ball to defenses on a weekly basis. He’s in the top ten for INTs every year and threw the most INTs in the NFL in 2013 and 2010.

– Matt Stafford. The Lions’ passer seemed to improve as the season went on last year. However, Megatron has moved on to a life beyond the bruising world of football. So things will be a little tougher for Stafford in 2016. Look for he and Golden Tate to make some nice headlines, but there are lots of better options on a weekly basis at QB.

– Kirk Cousins. I love Kirk Cousins. I couldn’t be happier that the guy earned a fat contract (for 2016 at least) by playing lights out in 2015 when he was handed the reins by Jay Gruden. That said, you can’t trust him with your fantasy team for the entire year. Take him late as a bench quarterback and see how the season starts for him. But it would be too easy to base your QB1 on a one year wonder.

Those names should make fantasy draft night a little easier for you. It’s easy to know the top few quarterbacks to take. Guys like Aaron Rodgers and Cam Newton are no-brainers.

I’m trying to help you fight off the panic that sets in once those top quarterbacks are no longer available, and you are about to do something stupid with your draft pick.

Or even worse, let the timer run out and end up with an automated pick that wrecks your entire draft.

Shane Mclendon is our go to guy for everything NFL and UFC related. He covers pro and college football with as much zeal as his love for UFC. With Shane, we've got you covered...He call himself an NFL nut that enjoys UFC action and a daily fantasy sports expert....at losing.